The Board Chairman of the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC), Freddie Blay, has reacted to allegations that he is unduly seeking to sell off 50% of Ghana’s share in the Deep Water Tano (DWT) under Jubilee Oil Holdings Limited (JOHL) to South African national oil company, PetroSA.
According to Mr. Blay, though he proposed the transaction, he only acted in the interest of the entire nation. To him, he has observed his conscience and though the was acting in the interest of the country.
Speaking to Citi FM yesterday, Mr. Blay insisted he had done nothing wrong and argued that the law would speak for itself, adding that there were very few documents on the deal.
“Possibly, I could be fired, but I do not see any reason why they are saying I should resign about this issue. I have done nothing wrong. I have observed my conscience and I thought I was protecting the interest of the country, and I am convinced about it, and if others think otherwise, and if those who appointed me are saying otherwise, then so be it,” he said.
TALKS
Though The Chronicle is yet to see a response from Jubilee House to the call for intervention by the Minister for Energy, Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh, Mr. Blay is reported by CITI to have revealed that he has had conversations with President Akufo-Addo, regarding the issue.
“I have spoken to the president about it and we have not gotten to the point where he will ask for his job back. It is not about convincing the president; the law will speak for itself and the law will talk, and there are few documents on the agreement.”
MEETING
Mr. Blay refuted claims he has bad blood with the Energy Minister, Mathew Opoku Prempeh, as reported by a section of the media.
He clarified that the minister has strong opinions and he, Blay, is determined to talk about anything he knows.He revealed that he met with the minister on Tuesday “and we exchanged ideas brightly.”
OPPOSITION
In his sternly worded letter to Jubilee House, the Minister for Energy argued that the action by the GNPC Board Chairman would undermine both the viability of the Corporation and the policy objectives of improving government revenue from petroleum, especially in the context of the energy transition.
The Minister, in his letter, was at a loss as to why the Board Chairman acknowledged that the transaction would need his written consent to make it effective, which consent he declined to offer, but the Board Chairman was still pursuing the transaction.
In one of the communications between the GNPC and the South African National Oil Company, PetroSA, the GNPC board chairman suggested a long break of “three calendar months” to deal with the government of Ghana and its stakeholders who needed to play a role, though the minister has written to him to stop the transaction.
DIVESTMENT
According to the Minister, a transaction that purportedly seeks to offload about 50% of the DWT stake that GNPC already owns could be considered “a divestment of a beneficial interest of the state.”
He argued that the divestment would require far more than the consent of the Minister, adding that if the President agreed to it, the Petroleum Agreement would be applied, in addition to the processes outlined in the Public Financial Management Law, the SIGA Law and potentially the approval of Parliament.
“One can imagine the uproar that this process will cause in the media,” the energy Minister noted.
